Robert McCormick Adams
American anthropologist and archaeologist noted for pioneering settlement surveys in Mesopotamia, influential theories on urbanization and state formation, and service as Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution from 1984 to 1994.
Books
This list of books are ONLY the books that have been ranked on the lists that are aggregated on this site. This is not a comprehensive list of all books by this author.
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1. Land Behind Baghdad
A History of Settlement on the Diyala Plains
A landmark archaeological study of the Diyala plains east of Baghdad, it reconstructs long-term settlement patterns, irrigation systems, and environmental change from prehistoric periods through the Islamic era. Combining systematic surface surveys, ceramic analysis, and historical sources, it maps cycles of urban growth and decline tied to shifting river courses, water control, and political authority. The work offers a foundational model for how landscape and institutions together shaped Mesopotamian communities over millennia.